Other than scouring google, what publications and available resources are out there for me to find out more on key players that might be interested in my area?

Easy to read, definitely has quite a bit of technical analysis but its with whit so you know where they are going with it.Some of the largest market players follow zerohedge...

I also became a continuing education provider, spent many thousands identifying and getting to know the centers of influence and the big players. 

Banks will be hard pressed to give you a lone if you don't have a couple of years of taxes and bank accounts to show them you are real player. 

The real players in town will know what attorneys to use when the time comes.

I do have one critique though .. your posting a ad really .. looking for people to come find you .. when really if you have been following along for quite sometime as you said .. you should already know the players in the area even if you haven't done business with them .. like @Kim Meredith Hampton I have seen her name numerous amounts of time on here.. and here she is again ..

all these things are fine and dandy great forms of marketing. seminars, SEO,direct mail, ppc etc. but how many deals do you plan on doing per month Seminars are an awesome form of marketing for your local market A great way to find out who the players are in your local market...definitely wouldn't recommend flying all over the country for seminars though

., etc. but the other people giving those agents what they want are getting property after property.Don't hate the player, hate the game........... : )        

Bought $200 of the best books recommended by the guests on the podcasts, signed up here, and have gone to the couple REIAs in my area.Right now I am trying to connect with local players and to get a job/internship with them over the summer—whether it is paid or unpaid I do not care.But to go back to your original skepticism about the RE classes taught in High School, I think it is only right to investigate more before we make assumptions.

Others top players in the market are Real-Crowd and LendingHome.Would love to hear feedback from neutral others on what they think are the +'s and -'s of each of the above names (but if you're affiliated with any of the above, please stay away!)